If you are a resident of Indiana and you’re about to obtain your driver’s license, you might have a lot of questions. It’s a very exciting time, but the process required to obtain your license might seem confusing at first. Below is an explanation of the steps required to obtain your license, the cost, and other information you may be wondering about.
Requirements
The general requirements for obtaining your driver’s license are that you obtain a learner’s permit first, and then you can obtain either a probationary or regular driver’s license. This is explained in further detail in the “Process” section below. The general requirements for qualification for each stage of the process are as follows.
- Learner’s Permit – You must be at least 15 years of age and be enrolled in an approved driver education program. Obtain a Certificate of Driver Education Enrollment from your training facility so you can show it to the person you train with.
- Driving Alone with a Learner’s Permit – Before you can drive alone you must have obtained 50 hours of supervised driving with a driver who is 25 years of age or older or a spouse who is 21 years of age or older. 10 hours must be nighttime driving. You must keep a log of these hours and present them to the BMV to apply for your driver’s license, and a parent or guardian must sign them.
- Actual License – After having a learner’s permit for 180 days and fulfilling the supervised driving requirements, you can apply to have a driver’s license. After you apply, you will have to take a knowledge, driving, and vision test and sign an agreement of financial liability.
License Cost
The Indiana BMV has a rather complex fee chart that outlines the different types of licenses, ages, and costs for obtaining those licenses. However, an Indiana Learner’s Permit costs $9, and a driver’s license costs about $30.
There are very few exceptions to these rules; however, if you are 16 years and 270 days old and you have not completed a driver education program, you may be able to obtain a driver’s license without completing one. You will still have to take the knowledge exam, the vision exam, and the practical – or driving – test, but you would essentially be skipping the learner’s permit part of the process. If you are unsure of whether or not you are eligible to apply for a driver’s license, you can check this chart, issued by the Indiana BMV, which outlines eligibility requirements.
Process
The first step to obtaining your driver’s license in the State of Indiana is to get an Indiana learner s permit. While you have your permit, as indicated above, you will have to fulfill hour requirements and log your supervised driving hours. Your learner’s permit must be held for at least 180 days, at which point you may be eligible to obtain a probationary driver’s license.
The driver’s license you apply for will be either probationary or non-probationary (a regular driver’s license). Age is the only determining factor of whether or not your license will be probationary. Those who are 16 or 17 at the time they obtain their driver’s license are considered to have a probationary license until the time they turn 18, but drivers who obtain their license at the age of 18 will have a regular driver’s license, not a probationary license.
After you apply for your driver’s license you will have to take several exams in order to obtain the license itself. The first of these is a knowledge exam, which will test you on the basics of driving that you learned in your driver education course and can find in the BMV Driver’s Manual. More information on this test is provided in the “BMV Practice Test” section. You will also have to take a vision test and a driving skills test.
Practice Test
When you apply for a driver’s license you must take a knowledge test. However, you don’t have to take this test without preparation. You will have learned most of the information required in your driver education course, but DriverKnowledge.com also provides a practice test online so you can get an idea of what to expect on the actual test.
Do not rely on the practice test alone. You will need to have a thorough understanding of the basic information outlined in the BMV Driver’s Manual, which you can find online through the BMV website and download at no charge. The web page also has a nice outline of the basic sections of the manual, and it is reasonable to assume that these main areas will all be covered on the knowledge exam.
BMV Office Location
There are BMV locations throughout the state of Indiana serving different purposes. A full-service license branch can help you with obtaining your license, and they are open Tuesdays through Saturdays. You can visit this page to find your local branch.
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Indiana DMV Practice Test – Quiz 1 (Signs)
Indiana DMV Practice Test – Quiz 2 (Signs)
Indiana DMV Practice Test – Quiz 3 (Rules)
Indiana DMV Practice Test – Quiz 4 (Rules)
Indiana DMV Practice Test – Quiz 5 (Rules)
Indiana DMV Practice Test – Quiz 6 (Rules)
Indiana DMV Practice Test – Quiz 7 (Rules)